Protecting the whales

“Thar She Blows!” was the whaler’s call when they spotted the tell tale blow of a whale.

The call hasn’t changed, even though we hunt them now with cameras and binoculars, rather than harpoons and ships.

Hunting brought several of the larger species of whales to the brink of extinction before whaling in Australian waters ended in 1978 with the closure of the Cheynes Beach Whaling Station, WA.

Slowly their numbers have increased and whale watching has become a popular and exciting activity.

While commercial hunting of large whales has ceased, scientific and subsistence hunting of both large and small species continues in many parts of the world.

Cetaceans face numerous other threats, including: boat strike; entanglement in discarded fishing gear; of habitat destruction; depletion of krill and small schooling fish in antarctic waters; by - catch (accidental capture) in fishery operations; pollution spills; acoustic (noise) pollution which can cause strandings, indirect impacts from tourism and poorly regulated whale watching.

Whales and dolphins are amazing animals and people in coastal areas of australia are privileged to be able to see them with relative ease. We have a great responsibility to protect their habitat to ensure whales and dolphins survive for future generations to see and enjoy.